this morning, jerry sandusky claims innocence. >> in my heart, i know i did not do these alleged disgusting acts. >> the coach convicted of sex crimes, learns his fate in just hours. and issues a surprising rambling audio statement, denying he molested children. we're live in pennsylvania. breaking news on the korean peninsula. north korea issuing a new threat against america. saying its missiles can now reach the u.s. officials are calling it the worst case of hoarding they've seen. dozens of 18-wheelers needed to clear it away. now, help for the horder. and one honest cabbie.

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returning nearly $250,000 in cash, believe it or not. getting a measly reward in return. making us ask, what would you do? and good morning, everyone. we begin this tuesday with jerry sandusky refusing to go quietly to his sentencing day. >> almost a year after the public first learned of the penn state child sex abuse investigation, sandusky will learn his fate later today. but he's already lashing out with a defiant statement of innocence and charges of conspiracy. >> abc's t.j. winick is in bellefonte, pennsylvania. good morning, t.j. >> reporter: good morning. that's right. jerry sandusky faces a sentence of 10 to more than 218 years. last night, we got a sneak preview of the statement he will read here at the court today. jerry sandusky now regrets not

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taking the stand in his own defense, after being convicted of 48 counts of sex abuse against young boys. for the last ten months, he's been writing a statement he plans to read today. last night, he issued an audio statement, which ran on penn state's studio-run radio. >> they can take away by life. they can make me out as a monster. in my heart, i know i did not do these alleged disgusting acts. >> reporter: judge john cleland has a during which laws changed and mandatory minimums were increased. his attorney, joe amendola, says sandusky is going to fight for a new trial. >> his morale has been amazingly upbeat. he's been working on his appeal.

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he's very -- i think he's very confident that he's going to get another shot at this. >> reporter: in addition to sandusky speaking, the sentencing hearing will include arguments by attorneys, possible messages of support from sandusky friends and family, and impact statements from at least two victims. >> it is a tragedy compounded by the fact that we have a man who was convicted who won't come forward and show any contrition and any remorse. >> reporter: after sentencing today, jerry sandusky will under in go an extensive evaluation, that could take a few months that determines which prison he is sent to. >> we know they're going to appeal whatever happens today. but for today's purposes, what do the possible sentences vary so much? >> reporter: we talked about in our story how the crimes were committed over 15 years and the law changed in pennsylvania

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during that time. essentially, the judge has a complicated task. he has to figure out what the law was at the time all of the crimes were committed, 45 counts. again, he could also figure that the sentences are going to run concurrently, eventually overlapping, which would make the total sentence shorter. or he could run them end-to-lend, which could be as long as 218 years. either way, it looks like jerry sandusky will spend the rest of his life behind bars. >> t.j. winick live in central pennsylvania. the other big story, it is four weeks until election day. >> president obama in san francisco late last night, stepped up his attacks on mitt romney's debate performance, saying it wasn't leadership, but instead salesmanship. >> but the latest poll taken after the debates, shows romney swinging ahead of the president, 49% to 45%. that's mainly due to a surge in support for romney from women voters. abc's karen travers has more on

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the campaign trial. >> reporter: shifting focus to foreign affairs, mitt romney launched a scathing attack on president obama's policies and leadership overseas. >> it's time to change course in the middle east. it's clear that the risk of conflict in the region is higher now than when the president took office. >> reporter: so far, the economy has dominated the campaign debate. but the romney campaign tried to seize on questions and criticism about the president's handling of last month's attack in libya. it was a chance to try to reverse the tide of romney's recent perceived missteps, including his initial response to the libya attack. the republican contender accused the president of passivity over partnership. >> i know the president hopes for a middle east aligned with us. but hope is not a strategy. >> reporter: the romney campaign was feeling good after its debate performance last week. and there's evidence he got a bounce. the president was stumping for cash, not votes. he continued his california fund-raising swing, which is

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expected to bring in $10 million over two days. between money events, the president attended a dedication to caesar chavez national monument. >> our world is a better place because caesar chavez decided to change it. >> reporter: with president obama and mitt romney both in ohio today, the focus is likely to shift back to the economy. >> thank you, karen. all of the new numbers putting more pressure on the vice presidential candidates who debate this coming thursday night. live coverage begins at 9:00 eastern, 6:00 pacific. one month of the u.s. ambassador to libya and three other americans were killed in a consulate attack in benghazi, there's word that a top white house official will visit libya today. reports say john brennan, the top white house counterterrorism adviser, will be in tripoli to meet with senior libyan officials about the investigation into the killing of ambassador chris stevens and the others. and a story breaking overnight. more explosive rhetoric out of

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north korea this morning, warning that the united states is in striking distance of its missiles. today's remarks are in response of south korea's announcement of a deal with the u.s. to triple the range of its missiles. the north says it shows the allies are plotting to invade the country. a travel nightmare seems to be over this morning. alaskan airlines says that flights are running close to normal after a fiber optic outage shut down its ticketing system. that forced the cancellation of nearly 45 flights. more than 130 other flights departed. but some were delayed as long as four hours. nothing worse than being at the airport and you can't go anywhere. time, now, for weather from across the country on this tuesday morning. cooler than normal, with a morning sprinkle from boston down to new york. thunderstorms around orlando and miami. also, a mix of rain and snow in northern minnesota.

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showers around minneapolis and green bay. moving later into chicago and kansas city. >> 60s in the midwest. and 70s from albuquerque all the way to boise. when we come back this morning, one of the worst cases of hoarding ever. we'll tell you where and show you just how bad it is. and something new in the sugary beverage battle. get ready for soda machines that dispense calorie counts. and the show must go on, they say. a qvc guest passes out on the air. but the co-host, he keeps on pitching.

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welcome back, everyone. american airlines is promising improvement this morning. the bankrupt carrier's ceo admits the past couple of weeks have been rough on its passengers. but delays and cancellations, but its on-time performance last month was 25% worse than its major competitors. but ceo tom horton says american is working through its problems. there is good news down the road for california drivers. analysts say wholesale gas prices are plunging, that's right, plunging. and retail prices should catch up later this week. the state is allowing refineries to switch to a cheaper blend ahead of schedule. california's gas prices are 85 cents higher than the national average. home prices nationally are edging up. but a mortgage processing service finds that in a few cities they're already at all-time highs. those metro areas never had the large swings in prices during

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housing's boom and bust cycle in the past decade. and they're smaller cities that have been good at creating jobs. many soda vending machines will soon dispense something new, information. labels listing the calorie count will be affixed to selection buttons. the first of the machines will roll out in chicago and san antonio earlier next year. they will include more low-calorie drinks. and speaking of sodas and fast food and that sort of thing. >> that was a beautiful segue to our next story because a survey finds that wendy's really lives up to fast food. its window orders was 2:20 faster than taco bell. wendy's was also the only one to improve on last year's performance. always a dark side. it finished in the middle of the pack when it came to accuracy. wendy's number one, then taco

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bell, then, bojangles, mcdonald's, chick-fil-a and burger king. >> that's one thing i miss living in the city. no drive-through. wendy's used to be my go-to. >> i'm hungry. go ahead. you read that. when we come back, unsportsman-like conduct. angry reaction after football fans cheer when their own quarterback is hurt. >> crazy story there. also, the staggering new numbers in the deadly meningitis outbreak. get this, 13,000 people may have been exposed. right here at table 6, zach canton's dad gave him a pep talk about asking out the cutest girl in algebra. the metcalfe brothers had a staring contest to see who'd get the last bite of dessert. four old roommates debated whether asia was or wasn't the greatest '80s supergroup ever. and a surprise birthday party caught amanda sullivan

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totally off-guard. all over delicious entrees like new smoky chipotle chicken fajitas from our $20 dinner for two. chili's -- more life happens here. we might still be making mix tapes. find this. pause this. play this. eject this. write this. it's like the days before esurance express lane™. you had to find a bunch of documents just to get a car insurance quote. now express lane finds your driving info with just one click, saving time to be nostalgic about the days before express lane. thank you, insurance for the modern world. esurance. now backed by allstate. click or call.

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now, for a look at morning road conditions. slight showers could dampen highways in the northeast. a slick commute in florida, from orlando to miami.

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slippery roads in northern minnesota. and a wet ride at times from the twin cities to chicago. >> if you are flying, it's going to be easy going. weather-related airport delays only expected in chicago. the deadly meningitis outbreak linked to a tainted shipment of steroids are claiming more lives. >> there's now 105 cases in 9 states. so far, eight people have died. and there's reports this morning of a ninth death. and 13,000 more people may be at risk. the steroids contaminated by a fungus were delivered to nearly two dozen states. fungal meningitis is not contagious. but those injected in the spine to relieve back pain are most at risk. philadelphia police are expecting more arrests in the wedding brawl that has gone viral. a relative of the groom has been charged in assault in the weekend fight between two wedding parties. the bride's uncle, who

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apparently was trying to protect other family members and flee the violence, died of a heart attack. even more sadly, it was his 57th birthday. officials in las vegas say it is the worst case of hoarding they have ever seen. the house was so packed, the front door had to be removed so cleaning crews could get inside. officials say the o had created a tiny space for himself to crawl atop all that junk. but cod not walk upright in the house. so far, they're carted away 18 truck loads of junk. that's only one-third of the house. they also found six dead cats and 30 still alive. well, a major change in american religious life. for the first time in its history, the u.s. does not have a protestant majority. according to a new study released overnight. now, among the reasons, the growing number of americans who have no religion. about one in five now say they do not belong to an organized religion. but if you're nondenominational,

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that was not count as protestant. and passions are running high in kansas city, all because of the behavior of some fans at sunday's chiefs game. kansas city quarterback matt cassel sustained a concussion after getting hit in the fourth quarter. classle layed there on the ground. and many chiefs fans were cheering because he was going to be replaced. >> i've already come to the understanding i probably won't live as long because i play this game. that's okay. that's a choice i've made. that's a choice all of us have made. but when you cheer, when you cheer somebody getting knocked out, i don't care who it is, and it just so happened to be matt cassel, it's sickening. >> hard to argue with that. even the baltimore ravenslayer who hit cassel called the

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cheering not cool. >> probably going to miss it because he has a concussion. on "monday night football," a still-perfect record for the houston texans. we get all the highlights from espn news. >> cassidy hubbarth here with your "sportscenter" update. bottom six, o's up 2-1. man on second. mark reynolds gets the same pitch. that will bring in matt wieters. and the orioles go up 3-1. tim johnson, struggled is sunday. would get alex rodriguez to strike out to end the game. and the orioles win it, 3-2. the series is now tied at 1-1 and will head to the bronx for game three. "monday night football," jets taking on the undefeated texans. first quarter, no score. matt schaub, finds owen daniels wide-open for the 34-yard

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touchdown. that's daniels' third-straight game with a t.d. later in the first, mark sanchez, finds jeff cumberland in the end zone. and the jets tie the game at 7-7. second quarter, arian foster, had a huge game. he takes the handoff and walks it into the end zone. late fourth quarter, sanchez, intercepted. sanchez, with his 15th career game with two or more interceptions. and houston rolls on to win, 23-17, to remain unbeaten. i'm cassidy hubbarth. that's your "sportscenter" update. have a great day. up next, "the pulse," and the qvc guest host who got more than she bargained for. what happened when she passed out on live tv. and the man who might be the most honest cab driver in america. he returns a fortune in cash and got peanuts for a reward.♪ ♪ i woke up to a feeling ♪ every little thing has meaning ♪

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time to check "the pulse" this morning and the stories you're talking about today. it appeared to be one of hollywood's rock-solid marriages has now crumbled. >> danny devito and rita perlman is splitting after 20 years. they first worked together on "taxi," from 1978 to 1982, the year they got married. >> devito and perlman have three adult kids. and no one is talking about the reason for the separation. >> they were together for 40 years. the show apparently must go on, even if the co-host is suddenly incapacitated on live . that's what happened on qcv. >> guest host cassie slane was

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pitching a tablet when she started to look dazed and passed out. >> but you know, in this -- >> are you okay? okay. what it does, is it gives us an opportunity -- >> you heard right. he just kept going, still plugging the product, as the camera shifted. slane posted on facebook she is feeling better. it was a fainting spell from low blood sugar and the second time she fainted on a qvc show. a las vegas winner is twice lucky. first, he won big bucks at a casino. but then, he left the jackpot, $221,000 in a cab. the driver, a ethiopian immigrant named adam woldemarim found the case. >> they were able to track down the guy who left it.

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and he was given only $2,000. but he's not complaining. friends say, 10% would have been a nicer reward. we can agree with that. a nicer reward. we can agree with that. >> for sure. he had said, "we do have a solution for sensitive teeth. you're going to have to change out your toothpaste." i like the way my old toothpaste felt. it made my teeth feel really clean, and i didn't want to not have that again. my dentist suggested that i switch to sensodyne. when i went to sensodyne it was as if i was still using my old toothpaste, but it has an added benefit, which will help take away my sensitivity. it's a life changer, it really is. it makes you go from grumpy back to happy again.

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updating our top stories now. jerry sandusky will be sentenced. and the former coach is out with a statement proclaiming his innocence. and mitt romney has seen a post-debate bump in many polls. abc news releases new numbers later today. nor saber rattling from north korea. this time warning its missiles are capable of reaching the u.s. mainland. the warning comes days after south korea announced a deal with the u.s. to extend its missile range. looking at today's weather. a drizzle in the northeast. thunderstorms in florida. showers around chicago, des moines, green bay, and minneapolis. and a wintry mix in northern minnesota. scattered showers in the bay area. finally from us this morning, if everything goes as planned, a death-defying feet of

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courage will make it into the history books later today. >> felix baumgartner is scheduled to free fall from the edge of space and go towards the new mexico desert. the plan, years in the making, is astounding. felix baumgartner will try to make a supersonic, stratosphere jump, from 23 miles high and breaking the sound barrier with speeds of 700 miles per hour. baumgartner, an austrian p paratrooper says he is ready for the challenge. >> it's almost here. this is my biggest dream. we're one step closer. and i'm almost there. i feel good at the moment. >> reporter: along with baumgartner's nerves of steal, the mission requires cutting-edge equipment. he'll strap on a special helmet, get into a pressurized suit and

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liftoff from roswell, new mexico. it will be hoisted by a balloon with 30 million cubic feet of helium. its skin much thinner than a ziploc baggy. it's so huge, i'm would cover 40 acres if laid flat. the ride up will take close to three hours. and then, the sky blast and the open site, the moment of truth. >> that one step forward, you know, is an important step because you know you're coming home. you're going back to a very healthy environment again because you've been in a hostile environment for so many hours. >> reporter: the heart-stopping return to earth could take 5 1/2 minutes. and after 25 years of skydiving, felix baumgartner promises this jump will be his last. >> last is probably a safe bet there. that is what's making news this america this morning.